DVSA hits the brakes on L-test emergency stops

EMERGENCY stops on the driving test, once the bane of nervous learner drivers, could be almost phased out if a new DVSA pilot scheme is successful.

- Chris Rosamond

Under the new test regime being trialled for three months at 20 locations across the country, the number of tests in which an emergency stop is demanded could be reduced to just one in every seven.

The emergency stop has been part of the UK driving test since its inception in 1935. Back then, being able to slow a vehicle safely with the feeble brakes and skinny tyres of the day was a potential life-saver.

Nowadays, the ubiquity of anti-lock braking and advanced driver-assistance systems may mean drivers no longer need to hone their skills for stopping safely. However, this is the first time the emergency stop element of the test has been reviewed since ABS became mandatory on new cars in 2004.